track and then another.
“Is it Buddha?” Nick asked.
“I hope so, because if it isn’t then we’ve got ourselves two tigers on the loose right now,” he answered. Mr. McCurdy stood up, his pants and hands covered in mud.
“What now?” I asked.
“There’s only one thing we can do now,” he answered quietly.
Chapter 5
“What?” Nick asked. “What do we do?”
“We go looking for him,” Mr. McCurdy answered.
“But shouldn’t we … call somebody?” By the time the words escaped my mouth Mr. McCurdy and my brother were gone. They were quickly moving up the drive, back toward the house. I sprinted after them. Falling in a half step behind, I heard Mr. McCurdy giving my brother orders.
“Go on back to the barn. You’ll find a heavy chain and a coil of rope hanging up on the wall just inside the stable door. Bring them back to the house.”
“But what about the snake?” I questioned.
“No, we don’t need the snake. I don’t see how he could help us,” Mr. McCurdy replied.
“That wasn’t what I meant!” I said with alarm.
“I know, I know. The snake won’t hurt Nick.” He turned to my brother. “You’re not afraid are you?”
Nick laughed and then sprinted away to keep me from saying anything more.
“Shouldn’t we call somebody?” I asked once again.
“Who’d you have in mind?” Mr. McCurdy asked.
“I don’t know …” I let the sentence hang unfinished.
“The dog catcher?”
We came to the house and Mr. McCurdy opened the screen door. “Grab that gun, will you? We might need it.”
Carefully I picked it up, holding it by the barrel, and followed him into the house. I was overwhelmed by the smell once again. I walked down the hallway to the kitchen. Mr. McCurdy was nowhere to be seen. Laura was there though. She was lying on her back under the kitchen table with her feet straight up in the air, tongue hanging out of her mouth, and eyes closed. As I watched, her eyes popped open. She stretched her legs and arched her back, then she righted herself and took to her feet. Her back was practically level with the bottom of the table and she rubbed herself against it, causing the legs of the table to slightly rise off the ground.
Even though I’d seen her every day for the last four days I really hadn’t remembered how big she was. Maybe it was just because I was here by myself now, but she seemed to practically fill the room. What I’d noticed was that at first she always seemed a little stiff and then as she warmed up she moved effortlessly and reminded me of a ballet dancer.
“Good Laura, nice Laura, gentle Laura,” I said quietly. I wasn’t sure if I believed what I was saying, although of all the animals on the farm she scared me the least. But here alone with her, I didn’t feel so brave anymore.
Mr. McCurdy burst back into the room. “Here, letme have the gun.”
He took the gun from my hands and set it down on the counter. He opened up a box and placed it on the table beside the gun. He removed a series of glass bottles.
“AAAHH!” I screamed as I jumped backwards, to the accompanying sound of claws scraping against the linoleum floor as Laura scurried back across the floor and under the table, causing the bottles to shake.
“Don’t scare my cheetah,” Mr. McCurdy scolded me.
“
It
scared
me!
It was nibbling at my toes.”
“Just means she likes you,” he answered. “Come on over here.”
I hesitated.
“Come on, don’t worry about your toes, she’s so scared of you now it could be months before she does that again. I need your help.”
I moved over reluctantly, keeping one eye on Laura huddled under the table.
“Can you read this for me?” he asked.
“Can’t you read?”
“Of course I can read!” he thundered. “But if you haven’t noticed I’m an old man and this is real small writing.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize, just read! No time to be wasting here.”
I read the faded and yellowing labels of two of
“Is it Buddha?” Nick asked.
“I hope so, because if it isn’t then we’ve got ourselves two tigers on the loose right now,” he answered. Mr. McCurdy stood up, his pants and hands covered in mud.
“What now?” I asked.
“There’s only one thing we can do now,” he answered quietly.
Chapter 5
“What?” Nick asked. “What do we do?”
“We go looking for him,” Mr. McCurdy answered.
“But shouldn’t we … call somebody?” By the time the words escaped my mouth Mr. McCurdy and my brother were gone. They were quickly moving up the drive, back toward the house. I sprinted after them. Falling in a half step behind, I heard Mr. McCurdy giving my brother orders.
“Go on back to the barn. You’ll find a heavy chain and a coil of rope hanging up on the wall just inside the stable door. Bring them back to the house.”
“But what about the snake?” I questioned.
“No, we don’t need the snake. I don’t see how he could help us,” Mr. McCurdy replied.
“That wasn’t what I meant!” I said with alarm.
“I know, I know. The snake won’t hurt Nick.” He turned to my brother. “You’re not afraid are you?”
Nick laughed and then sprinted away to keep me from saying anything more.
“Shouldn’t we call somebody?” I asked once again.
“Who’d you have in mind?” Mr. McCurdy asked.
“I don’t know …” I let the sentence hang unfinished.
“The dog catcher?”
We came to the house and Mr. McCurdy opened the screen door. “Grab that gun, will you? We might need it.”
Carefully I picked it up, holding it by the barrel, and followed him into the house. I was overwhelmed by the smell once again. I walked down the hallway to the kitchen. Mr. McCurdy was nowhere to be seen. Laura was there though. She was lying on her back under the kitchen table with her feet straight up in the air, tongue hanging out of her mouth, and eyes closed. As I watched, her eyes popped open. She stretched her legs and arched her back, then she righted herself and took to her feet. Her back was practically level with the bottom of the table and she rubbed herself against it, causing the legs of the table to slightly rise off the ground.
Even though I’d seen her every day for the last four days I really hadn’t remembered how big she was. Maybe it was just because I was here by myself now, but she seemed to practically fill the room. What I’d noticed was that at first she always seemed a little stiff and then as she warmed up she moved effortlessly and reminded me of a ballet dancer.
“Good Laura, nice Laura, gentle Laura,” I said quietly. I wasn’t sure if I believed what I was saying, although of all the animals on the farm she scared me the least. But here alone with her, I didn’t feel so brave anymore.
Mr. McCurdy burst back into the room. “Here, letme have the gun.”
He took the gun from my hands and set it down on the counter. He opened up a box and placed it on the table beside the gun. He removed a series of glass bottles.
“AAAHH!” I screamed as I jumped backwards, to the accompanying sound of claws scraping against the linoleum floor as Laura scurried back across the floor and under the table, causing the bottles to shake.
“Don’t scare my cheetah,” Mr. McCurdy scolded me.
“
It
scared
me!
It was nibbling at my toes.”
“Just means she likes you,” he answered. “Come on over here.”
I hesitated.
“Come on, don’t worry about your toes, she’s so scared of you now it could be months before she does that again. I need your help.”
I moved over reluctantly, keeping one eye on Laura huddled under the table.
“Can you read this for me?” he asked.
“Can’t you read?”
“Of course I can read!” he thundered. “But if you haven’t noticed I’m an old man and this is real small writing.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize, just read! No time to be wasting here.”
I read the faded and yellowing labels of two of
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